An integrated circuit includes a base comprising an insulating dielectric. A plurality of conductive lines extends vertically above the base in a spaced-apart arrangement, the plurality including a first conductive line and a second conductive line adjacent to the first conductive line. A void is between the first and second conductive lines. A cap of insulating material is located above the void and defines an upper boundary of the void such that the void is further located between the base and the cap of insulating material. In some embodiments, one or more vias contacts an upper end of one or more of the conductive lines.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
4. The integrated circuit of claim 3, wherein the first conductive line comprises a first metal and the second conductive line comprises a second metal compositionally different from the first metal.
6. The integrated circuit of claim 1, wherein the base further includes a first contact and a second contact within the insulating dielectric, wherein the first conductive line contacts the first contact, the second conductive line contacts the second contact, and a lower boundary of the void is defined by the insulating dielectric of the base.
7. The integrated circuit of claim 6, wherein the first contact is a source region contact, and the second contact is a drain region contact.
8. The integrated circuit of claim 6, wherein one of the first contact or the second contact is a gate contact.
9. The integrated circuit of claim 1, wherein the plurality of conductive lines includes at least five conductive lines, wherein each pair of adjacent lines of the at least five conductive lines defines a void therebetween.
12. The integrated circuit of claim 11, wherein the first conductive line comprises a first metal and the second conductive line comprises a second metal compositionally distinct from the first metal, and wherein the first insulating material is compositionally distinct from the second insulating material.
13. The integrated circuit of claim 11, wherein the void extends vertically between at least a portion of the first insulating material and at least a portion of the second insulating material, and wherein the cap of insulating material extends laterally between at least a portion of the first insulating material and at least a portion of the second insulating material.
15. The integrated circuit of claim 10, wherein the first conductive line is spaced laterally from the second conductive line by no more than 30 nm.
16. The integrated circuit of claim 10 further comprising a conductive via in contact with at least one of an upper end of the first conductive line and an upper end of the second conductive line, wherein a portion of the void extends along part of the conductive via.
18. The integrated circuit of claim of claim 17, wherein the first insulator material completely defines the upper boundary of the void.
19. The integrated circuit of claim 17, wherein the upper boundary of the void is defined partly by the first insulator material and partly by the via structure.
Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.
June 4, 2019
February 28, 2023
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